British Columbia’s Director of Employment Standards Branch has directed her field officers to give silvicultural employee complaints top priority in the province. Patti Stockton made the announcement in a meeting with WSCA directors last week in Victoria. Stockton said she is sending the message that her Branch means business about enforcing employment standard regulations for the silvicultural contracting industry in B.C.

Besides preventing workers’ abuses she emphasized the higher profile for silvicultural complaints is important for the contracting market place as well. Contractors have to be able to compete based on the same set of minimum standards. Legitimate silvicultural businesses should not be at a disadvantage because they are obeying the law she said.

Last year new Employment Standards Act Regulations were introduced allowing flexible shift patterns and longer workdays for piecework employees. However complaints received by the Branch this year indicate that some contractors continue to violate the Act’s regulations. Offences include illegal bonus systems or wage offsets which penalize planters, employee contracts that contravene worker’s rights, failure to pay minimum wage, and failure to pay employees every two weeks.